


Experimental infatuation

by cottoncandyboys (mik0rin)



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Minor JaeIl
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-19
Updated: 2017-08-19
Packaged: 2018-12-14 07:25:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11778261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mik0rin/pseuds/cottoncandyboys
Summary: This study has the purpose of showing that falling in love with your partner in the middle of an experiment is, for the most part, an awful idea and that it should be avoided in order to obtain proper and valid results without emotional meddling.





	Experimental infatuation

**Author's Note:**

> First of all, thank you for passing by and I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing, this is the story for prompt #128!! Second of all, I major in Psychology and all but haha I am not so sure about anything at all because I'm still a freshmen so sorry if there's anything innacurate (especially regarding classes and how everything goes, honestly). 
> 
> To the prompter: thank you for this, it was really fun to write and I'm sorry because I ended up misreading physiology and thought it was psychology and I really noticed my slip when I was already 6k words into the story @_@ I don't know whether you were expecting this pairing for it or not but tadam surprise, I'm extremely whipped for the rare pairs so here you go~

It's Mark's second week in college, after transferring from Canada that is, and it's also the second time he has classes with Professor Kim. The man in question is rather young, always wearing the same smile on his lips and probably owning a whole collection of sweaters and dress shirts because that's what he's always wearing, be it at work or not - Mark has met him off campus once and he looked ready to give a lecture about the human behaviour like he had on their first class - but today, the smile on Professor Kim's lips looks different, it's wider, even reaching his eyes.

"Good morning, class," he says and he places the books and papers on top of the desk. Mark, who was busy contemplating if he should go get some coffee or not, raises his head whilst rubbing his eyes softly, hoping the drowsiness that accompanied him all the way from the dorms will leave him in peace for the next five hours or so. "Today I'll be introducing one of this semester's project," a collective groan ensues and Professor Kim seems used to it because he doesn't reprimand them, just waits until the noise ceases. "Since we'll be seeing behaviourism in depth for the entirety of this month, nothing better than have some field work, am I right?"

A student raises a hand and Professor Kim, with a gesture of his own hand, asks him to speak. "How much in our grade do we get with it?" it's Donghyuck, Mark has learned in the short span of time he has existed in the same space as him that he shouldn't try to argue with Donghyuck over pretty much anything, not because he was one of those people who thought they were always right, but because he _always_ had an answer for everything.

"Very good question," says the professor and the students are suddenly more interested in said project now that grade is involved - most of them at least, Mark, for instance, is quite worried. "But I thought you'd ask me what the project is about, since you will have to write me a report on it, the grade you get in the project will be enough for the work you will have to put in it."

Those words do not ease Mark's worries, the moment he raised his head when the professor entered the classroom a few minutes ago and he saw that almost wicked smile is still intriguing him.

"So professor," it's Donghyuck again, he's not raising a hand anymore and just making his question. "What is it about?"

"It'll be an observation of the general human behaviour when put under an uncomfortable but bearable circumstance. So basically, you'll have to spend 48 hours without a break in the company of another student of this same subject," Professor Kim starts and there is already more groaning and Mark's sensing an oncoming headache. "That I will assign you, so there's no partnering up with someone of your liking, Mr. Lee," he says it directly to Donghyuck and he pouts a little - _does he really hope it'll work?_ "Now, open your books and notebooks and let's focus. We'll deal with the project on Friday during your last class, which is an empty one. So, please, come here once your class with Professor Jung is over."

The subject is dropped quickly and everyone - again, most of them, since Donghyuck is sulking wherever he's sat at - does as instructed, including Mark this time, wide awake already and ruminating the idea of being stuck with someone for two whole days at the back of his head - he's definitely uncomfortable about it, but depending on who he's partnered up with, it won't be too bad (hopefully not Donghyuck, he looks way too hyper to be with for more than half a day, or Joohyun, pretty girls make him nervous, imagine being in the company of one for such long time?).

 

"So are you doing the behaviour project already?" Jaehyun asks curiously when Mark mentions the class to him while they're having dinner. Jaehyun is Mark's roommate, a very nice person to have as a company, he is calm, polite and actually knows how to cook - different from himself which best recipe is cereal with milk. "I had this one when I first entered college."

"But you're majoring in Business," is all Mark says, a skeptical look in his eyes and Jaehyun's laughing at him, for a whole minute until he takes a deep breath and stops.

"It was optional," he replies and Mark nods, it finally makes some sense. "It wasn't the _best_ project ever but neither was it the worst. It really depends on who's your partner, really."

"And who was yours?" Mark's curious, sat on the edge of the couch and Jaehyun has a fond smile on his lips.

"Taeil."

"Oh," _Oh_ , so it was Jaehyun's current and long term boyfriend, Mark's hands suddenly starts sweating and he doesn't know _why_ \- okay, maybe he does but it doesn't make it less _stressing_. "Interesting."

"You're panicking, Mark," Jaehyun points out and Mark only nods, not even trying to deny it because he is definitely nervous. "It's going to be alright, it's not that bad, maybe you'll meet someone nice," Mark misses the _or not_ that Jaehyun whispers, way too immersed in his own thoughts to bother with it - maybe majoring in Media Studies wasn't much of a good idea (why did they even have a Psychology subject as a mandatory one?).

 

 

Throughout the week, Mark's heard his classmates, who share the same class with him, talking about _the_ project - he's been trying to take his head out of it but they keep on reminding him of that damned thing constantly -, for the most part, they're attempting to come up with an strategy to fool the professor into thinking that they actually spent those 48 hours with the assigned person when they didn't - because in reality, all they want to do is party the entire weekend without being stuck with a random stranger.

At this point, Mark is already conformed with the whole thing, although, he's a pile of nerves still - anxiety taking over every time when he lies down in bed and comes up with different scenarios but Jaehyun has somehow managed to help him ease his overthinking ( _It's not so bad, I promise_ the older reassured Mark and he decided to believe him instead of suffering in advance).

That's why when Friday arrives, he dies slowly on the inside whenever he sees that the last class is almost there - it feels like time is passing faster than the usual, but that's because he wants it to stop ticking. The moment Professor Jung dismisses them, Mark thoroughly checks his things, to prolong the suffering, before he's exiting the classroom and going to Professor Kim's, he sees a few of his classmates chatting happily on the way, he just wishes he were feeling a tiny bit like that.

As expected, Professor Kim is already there, Mark quietly enters the room and sits at the back as he usually does, watching as the class gets fuller than the usual, he notices a few faces he's not familiar with and he's suddenly growing more and more worried.

"Good morning, is everybody here?" the professor asks and looks around, _that_ smile on his lips, and the students look at each other in confusion, so it's not just Mark who's sure of what's going on, the boy sighs in relief. "I'll be taking attendance just to make sure everyone's present."

While he waits for his name to be called, Mark plays with his fingers, quite uneasy and praying it will all get done with as soon as possible. Professor Kim is quick to finish it and is soon standing in front of the entire class.

"Alright, guys," he claps his hands, looking from right to left, the chattering ceases and Mark holds his breath. "Before I tell you who's partnered with who, we have a few rules to go through, so this experiment does not end up being a complete disaster. First, I won't be actually checking this but, no intercourse is allowed in the period of 48 hours, be it with the person who's your partner or someone else," the students start whispering and Mark hides behind his hands when he hears that, feeling his cheeks burning - he hadn't ever considered such thing and he'd rather have lived without listening to any of that. "Second, in an attempt to be sure that you won't cheat on the experiment, I'll be handcuffing you to each other and you are not supposed to try taking it off," the whispering turns into loud talking and a few of them protesting for their _rights_. "Now, I know this feels like it's too much, but I've done it without the handcuffs a few years ago and it was not successful because everyone lied on their reports."

"Reports?" says someone from the front, Professor Kim smiles and nods his head eagerly.

"I was about to get there, though I have mentioned it before, you guys will have a week to write about the experiment and hand it to me. Don't worry, I'll explain the details about it during our next class," some of them are already giving in to the idea, since arguing about it won't do them any good, the professor looks and sounds determined. Besides, a project is a project and as long as they can get some points to add up to their grade, there's nothing bad about it. "Now to the exciting part, I will say the names and, when I am done, you can get up and look for your partner," he takes a paper in hands and scans it with a grin. "Bae Joohyun and Kang Seulgi."

 _Oh, shit_ Mark curses mentally and covers his face with both hands, already feeling his head aching. _It's not going to be someone from my class_.

"Seo Youngho and Son Seungwan."

Mark starts sweating, Professor Kim is not announcing the names in any type of order.

"Lee Donghyuck and Kim Dongyoung."

It's going to be him anytime.

"Na Jaemin and Kim Yerim."

Mark sighs, this is going to deduct a few years from his life span.

"Lee Jeno and Mark Lee."

He chokes when his name is said and barely manages to hear anything else, his internal monologue of _it's going to be awful_ battling with the other part of himself trying to reassure him that _everything's gonna be okay_.

"We'll be meeting up in front of the main entrance of this building at around nine tonight, it's for the final touch that is the handcuffing," Mark shakes his head, blinking a few times before focusing on what's happening right in front of his eyes, the professor looks like he's done assigning all the duos and is now giving out a few more instructions - he's even writing it on the blackboard for them. "Now please, socialize for the remaining half an hour we have left, at least get to know each other's names, how you'll arrange sleeping and all the complicated stuff that needs to be sorted out already."

Mark remains frozen in place, his eyes traveling back and forth, watching how some of his colleagues are smiling widely as they look for their partners.

"Professor!" calls someone and Mark tries to search for the owner's voice. "Can I change my partner?"

"Why?" Professor Kim replies from the front and Mark locates the boy, he looks a few years older than him and does not look very pleased.

"I do _not_ like Donghyuck and I do _not_ want to spend 48 hours with him, I already see that face every day," he crosses his arms and Donghyuck, who's making his way towards his partner, puffs his cheeks up and stares at him, pretending to be hurt.

"Oh wow Dongyoung hyung, I didn't know you hated me, we don't even know each other properly, how can you not like me?" Donghyuck blinks innocently at him and Professor Kim explains to Dongyoung that he is not allowed to switch partners.

Someone taps Mark's shoulders and he jumps, previously distracted by Dongyoung's discussion with the professor and Donghyuck. "Are you Mark?"

"I think so," Mark squeaks and does not meet the boy's eyes, he feels him dragging a chair and sitting by his side. He curses mentally for sounding scared, he even forgot to get up and look for his partner. "You're Jeno then?" he finally creates enough courage and turns his head, he's met with a smile that reaches the owner's eyes and Mark holds his breath.

"Yup," Jeno extends his hands and Mark looks at it wide eyed as though the boy's going to hit him. "I don't bite," he laughs when Mark stays still. "Unless you want me to," Mark looks up at him with wide eyes and Jeno stares at him. "I hope you know that I was joking unless you don't mind me doing that."

"I do mind," Mark feels the corner of his lips twitching in an almost smile, he takes Jeno's hands and shakes it.

"You're really nervous," Jeno retreats his hand and Mark rubs his own on his jeans, realizing that he's actually sweating. "Do you want to talk later?"

"No, I'm fine," he shakes his head at Jeno and takes a deep breath before he raises his head, grinning at his partner. "So, what do you major in?"

"Dance," Jeno replies happily and Mark nods in acknowledgement. "How about you?"

"Media studies," he rubs the back of his neck when he speaks and Jeno looks interested but too shy to ask further. "So, like Professor Kim said, we'll have to share a room or something like that."

"Can we please stay over at yours? My roommate is going to make fun of us the whole time," Jeno pleads and Mark nods at him, he was actually going to offer his shared apartment with Jaehyun since the older never stays over on weekends, either visiting his parents who live at the other side of the city or at Taeil's. "That's a relief then, Renjun looks like a nice person, which he is, but he enjoys teasing me for whatever I do and I'd rather avoid that."

"Nah, it's fine," Mark assures him and Jeno smiles again, it's like an automatic response from him and it's so bright that Mark has to look away. "Another thing, since we are going to be handcuffed, I don't think we'll be able to actually shower, you know, so before that happens, I think we can agree on taking a shower and putting on some 'comfortable but good enough to go out clothes'."

"Well thought," Jeno says with a snap of his fingers. "What do you think I should bring with me?"

"I don't know, we have pillows and some blankets there, so I don't think you'll need it," Mark speaks more to himself than Jeno but Jeno writes it down on his phone's notes.

"Do you like cats?"

"Uh?" Mark looks confused at the question, he turns his head to look at Jeno and see if he's joking but he looks serious. "Yes, I like cats and dogs."

"Me too, but I like cats better," Jeno nods to himself and pockets his phone. "Do you know how to cook?"

"Not really," Mark thinks back about the time Jaehyun had to throw a pan out because he burned what was in it, he can't even make popcorn. "Wait, absolutely not."

"I can make instant ramyun," Jeno beams and Mark laughs this time. "It's awesome according to Renjun but he can't even boil water so I'd not take it as a parameter."

When they're finally managing to start a proper conversation, Professor Kim claps his hands at the front and dismisses them, reminding everyone that they have to be in front of this same building at nine o'clock sharp. Mark gather his things quickly and exits the classroom with Jeno following him.

"I have to go somewhere now, see you later," Mark bows and waves goodbye to Jeno before Jeno can say anything in return, he holds the straps of his backpack and rushes to get back to his apartment.

He twists the doorknob and enters the apartment, Mark throws his backpack on the floor and finally notices Jaehyun by the couch, sound asleep and Taeil reading a book right by his side.

"Hello," Taeil greets and Mark smiles at him. "We already had lunch, Jae left some for you."

"Thanks, man," he enters the kitchen and quickly finds the bowl of pasta inside the microwave, Mark heats it up and runs back to the living room, he sits down on the floor and uses the coffee table as support. "How's it going?"

"Alright, I guess," Taeil says as he looks over a few music sheets with a frown. "Jae told me you're doing that experiment with Professor Kim, how do you feel about it?"

Mark chews on his meal while thinking of what he should give as an answer.

"I don't know how it is going to be but my partner seems like a nice person," Taeil seems pleased with his reply and puts the papers down to the side, sighing and looking like he's giving up on whatever he was doing - or trying to do. "He has a nice smile, I guess that's a good thing."

He hears Taeil clicking his tongue at him and stares up at him, mouth filled with food.

"What?" he says and earns a glare for speaking with his mouth full.

"Barely started the project and you already have a crush on your partner?" Mark almost chokes on the spaghetti and Taeil accidentally hits Jaehyun while laughing. "Sorry," he mumbles when Jaehyun lifts his head and looks around in confusion.

"What time is it?" he asks, sounding as sleepy as ever, and Mark would have answered him if he weren't still coughing nonstop and trying to stay alive.

"Just a few minutes past noon," says Taeil instead and Jaehyun groans, throwing his body down on the other side of the couch and burying his face on one of the cushions. "Lil Mark is nurturing a crush on his partner," Taeil teases and nudges Jaehyun, Mark just shakes his head in disapproval.

"Who's your partner?" Jaehyun asks while still resting down on the furniture.

"Uh, Lee Jeno?" Taeil gasps and covers his mouth, even Jaehyun shoots him a weird look. "Do you, perhaps, know the boy?"

"You don't?" he replies confused and both mouth a _no_. "I wonder if you two live under a rock, he's one of the popular kids from the batch of new Dance majors, like, popular as in he's really good at what he does."

"I major in Business, why am I supposed to know about his existence?" Taeil tsks and sighs, Jaehyun simply rolls his eyes at his boyfriend and decides to go back to his nap.

"My point is, he is a nice person, I approve," Taeil gives Mark a thumbs up and the younger just stares at him for a full minute before he goes back to his half eaten pasta, already cold by now. "Wait, I didn't know you were into guys."

"Doesn't really matter to me," he mumbles and keeps eating, Taeil shrugs and goes back to what was supposed to be studying.

 

 

Just like earlier, the moment the clock shows that it's already half past eight, Mark sighs deeply and Jaehyun pats his head in concern.

"Jesus Christ, you even met your partner already and yet, here you are, looking like you're about to propose to him," Jaehyun says in an attempt to show Mark that he's being nervous for nothing but it seems to make things slightly worse.

"Nah man, I am fine," Mark breathes out shakily and bumps against the counter, bringing a mug down and wincing when it shatters into pieces. "Oh shit, I dropped it. Sorry."

More than being mad that Mark broke one of his favorite mugs, Jaehyun is seriously worried instead. "It's alright, don't worry. More important, you do know I won't be here tonight because Ilie said he wants to go see a movie, right?" Mark nods and maintains his gaze fixed on his roommate. "Promise me you will not freak out for nothing and destroy our apartment, for the love of God, do not try to cook or anything. Actually, I left a few things in the fridge, you just have to heat it up, but it's only for tonight. The other ones will be up to you, we have enough groceries for a few proper meals."

"Okay," Mark squeaks and crouches to retrieve the shards but Jaehyun stops him, afraid that he'll get hurt.

"Just go shower and get ready to leave," he says and pushes Mark away, he protests a little because he has already showered and is actually ready to go. He tells Jaehyun just that and gets a hand on his shoulder as response. "Since I won't be here when you get back, good luck," Mark nods and mumbles a thank you, he watches as Jaehyun carefully cleans the floor and throws the porcelain in a box. "Also, if I were you, I'd leave. It's already fifteen to nine."

Mark panics, he looks at the clock hanging above the television and sees that Jaehyun is right, he bids him goodbye before grabbing his keys and leaving the place.

Jaehyun runs a finger through his hair, already picturing a hundred gone bad scenarios in his head but he decides to leave it as it is, Mark is old enough to know how to fend for himself and besides, there will be someone else there, it can't be all that bad - _right?_

 

 

It's really dark and the lampposts feel like they aren't enough to light up the path Mark's taking but, fortunately, he doesn't take long to get there, especially due to the amount of people in front of the building. What really takes some time is locating Jeno, there aren't too many people there but it proves to be quite the difficult task, at least for Mark it is.

He is surprised once again by a hand on his shoulder and, like a dejá vu, when he turns to see who's trying to catch his attention, he's greeted with Jeno's bright smile - despite being already late at night, Mark feels like he needs a pair of sunglasses.

"Hello again," Jeno beams and he sheepishly rubs the back of his neck, Mark is already expecting him to drop a bomb - something like I forgot to shower or anything close to that. "I forgot to take my backpack with my stuff at my apartment because I was somewhere else before coming here, do you think we could stop by to retrieve it? It probably won't take more than a minute and I live about five minutes from here."

That sounds a lot better than what Mark was waiting for, he agrees in relief and Jeno's almost expression of worry goes back to being a smile.

"Students," they hear Professor Kim saying from wherever he is, both turn around in search of him. "Pair by pair come over here and I'll lock your handcuffs, this shall not take more than five minutes total."

Now Mark's back to being jittery and nervous, he looks at Jeno but Jeno himself seems to be alright about the whole thing, they end up being part of the last batch of students, although they didn't have to wait long like their professor had said. Right behind them, Mark can hear Donghyuck and Dongyoung arguing again.

"Hyung hyung hyu-"

"Shut up!" Dongyoung hisses and Mark stifles a laugh, so does Jeno. "If you act like that while we're stuck with each other, I will kill you during your sleep."

"Alright alright, I just wanted to say that I hope we can be friends," Donghyuck actually sounds genuine but Dongyoung huffs at it, the air he blows even hits the back of Mark's head. "I won't annoy you, I promise."

Mark would have eavesdropped more of their conversation it it weren't their turn already, he fumbles with his fingers whilst both his hands are inside the pockets of his jacket.

"Your wrists," Professor Kim requests and both extend one hand at him, Mark sighs one last time before the handcuffs are safely locked. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Jeno says and Mark mumbles something inaudible.

Once everyone's properly handcuffed to each other, Professor Kim repeats the exact same instructions he's given before and also tells them that they should be at this exact place on Sunday evening at nine. He dismisses them and all the students start going to different directions then.

"This way," Jeno points to the opposite direction of Mark and Jaehyun's apartment, leading the way to where they're supposed to go get his belongings. They leave campus and just cross the street, Jeno pulls him up a flight of stairs and stops in front of a door with the number 203. "We're here," he announces and fishes for his bunch of keys on the inside pockets of his jersey. "I hope Renjun is not home."

But of course, luck is never on Mark's side, so it's obvious that Jeno's roommate is home, sat on the couch watching television the moment they step foot inside the place.

"Good evening," Renjun greets both and Mark has to admit that Jeno was right, Renjun looks like a damn nice person, that's proven to be a misconception the moment Renjun points a finger at their hands that are handcuffed together and bursts out laughing. "What's that?"

"It's part of an important assignment for one of my classes," Jeno explains simply and drags Mark forward, they come to a halt in front of what looks like it's supposed to be Jeno's bedroom, he twists the doorknob and quickly grabs the said backpack next to the door. They're soon standing in the middle of the living room and Renjun still has an amused smile adorning his thin lips. "I'll be back on Sunday," Jeno tells him as Renjun wipes a fake tear from the corner of his eyes, nodding his head in understanding, Mark looks at Renjun and takes notice of the pumpkin color of his hair, obviously not natural, also noticing the rosy on his cheeks, he looks way younger than Jeno and himself.

"Are you really a college student?" Mark asks out of curiosity and receives a weird look from Jeno.

"Renjun and I are the same age," Mark gives him a doubtful look and Jeno's already rolling his eyes at him - since when did they become intimate to the point where he does that to him? "Wait, how older than me are you?"

"A year," he answers, thinking about that little information Taeil has given him about Lee Jeno being a freshman. "I thought Renjun was still a junior high student " he jokes and Jeno is the one laughing this time. "I think we should go before it gets late and dangerous to walk outside."

"Sure," Jeno agrees and they bid goodbye to Renjun, not before having him laugh at their faces again. "I swear," Jeno groans when they're already outside and he's done locking the apartment. "What direction is your apartment?" Mark points to where they came from and they're soon passing in front of the building they were minutes ago but keep going straight ahead.

"Almost there," Mark tells Jeno and increases his speed, they soon arrive at the building he lives and run up to the third floor. "That's it," he unlocks it and pushes the door open, revealing an empty and quiet apartment. Mark turns the lights to the living room on and pulls Jeno inside, closing the door and throwing his bunch of keys inside the bowl by the entrance. "Are you hungry?" Mark asks, quite nervous now that it's actually happening but, surprisingly, not as much as he was before.

"I don't think I am at the moment," he answers and Mark just pulls him to sit down on the couch with him. "We should figure some things out."

"What kind of things?" Mark's curious and he rests his cheek on his free hand - the left one - and Jeno pursues his lips.

"Like, if we go out of the apartment, are we supposed to walk freely like we're not handcuffed to each other or should we find a way to 'hide' it?" Jeno looks concerned about it and Mark closes his eyes, trying to come up with some sort of solution. "Also, how are sleeping arrangements going to be? Should we share the bed?"

Mark chokes at the last part, trying to focus on the first barrier but the whole problematic seems to be already inducing a headache.

"We could hold hands, let me see if it looks natural," Jeno exclaims and gently clasps Mark's hands into his. Mark looks down with really wide eyes. "Okay, it looks alright, we can do this, what do you think?"

"Sure," Mark mumbles and looks away, placing his chin on the palm of his left hand, staring at the empty wall next to Jaehyun's bedroom door.

"I think the cuffs of your shirt will hide the handcuffs, good thing that I put on a long sleeved shirt as well," Jeno talks and Mark just nods, not looking at him. Jeno hasn't released his hand yet and Mark feels that he's starting to sweat again. "And about the bed, I don't quite min-"

"You can sleep on my bed and I'll sleep right next to it," Mark says before Jeno can finish his suggestion and the way he says that so convincingly seems not to give Jeno any room to oppose to the offer. "Do you want to watch television? Do you want to eat?"

"I don't, but I feel like you might be hungry, so I'm going to agree to eating," Jeno smiles and gets up, letting Mark show him the way to the kitchen. "Whoa that looks really fancy?" he points at the kimchi stew he pulls out from the fridge and puts on the stove, Mark laughs.

"Well, it wasn't made by me," Mark explains and Jeno doesn't seem to mind, he looks at the pot and its contents slowly starting to boil. "Jaehyun hyung is really good at cooking."

They remain in silence, just the sound the stove makes when the fire is on and Mark takes a look at Jeno from the corner of his eyes, noticing that he's closer than he had imagined and he silently takes a step to the side, increasing their distance by a few centimeters.

"I think it's hot enough," Jeno points out, startling Mark and almost making the poor boy drop the lid on the floor. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I am fine," Mark assures Jeno and grabs two pairs of chopsticks and two bowls, filling both and leaving the empty pot on the sink, he'll just wash it tomorrow. "Let's eat and then sleep, I'm dying."

Jeno nods and takes the bowl Mark hands him, they walk back to the living room in silence, sitting down on Mark's usual eating spot by the coffee table.

Having a meal with an almost complete stranger in the comfort of your house was not as weird as sharing a room with the same almost stranger and Mark was surprised with himself for not freaking out in the middle of the night or anything, he just closed his eyes and slept - he hoped the same happened to Jeno.

 

 

If the birds chirping early in the morning didn't wake neither Jeno nor Mark up, the strong sunlight illuminating his room wouldn't do the trick as well. Although, Jeno does sit up in bed abruptly, long forgotten that he was not at his own apartment and that he was tied to Mark.

" _Ouch ouch ouch_ ," Mark repeats a few times, getting up so he avoids bending his arm at an odd position and dislocating something.

"Hol- I'm sorry," Jeno squeaks in surprise and brings his hands down to the mattress, Mark sighs in relief and rests his forehead against the bed. "I forgot we were in the middle of the project, I'm really sorry."

"It's fine," Mark's voice comes out muffled but Jeno still manages to catch it. He notices that Mark's still recovering from the shock of being awakened so abruptly, so instead of saying anything at all, Jeno looks around the room, it's as big as his - should he say as small as his instead? - and he sights a guitar next to the desk filled with books and a silver laptop in the middle of it.

"Do you play the guitar?" he asks and Mark lifts his head, eyes still closed but he gives him a positive answer in the form of a hum. "Can I see it?"

"You want to see me playing?" Mark questions but nonchalantly stands up, Jeno gets the message and leaves the bed, both walk up to the instrument and Mark takes it, sitting down on the bed when they walk back to it. "Wait, I don't think I can play with my hand like this."

"I can," Jeno asks for permission with the way he looks at him and Mark hands it to Jeno. "Sorry, can you lift your hand," Mark nods and does as requested, he's surprised when Jeno starts stringing a few chords and they sound really pleasant despite the limiting circumstances they're under right now - but Mark might just be slightly bitter that he can't play it at the moment without hurting Jeno's wrist. He notices that Jeno's not doing anything exceptional, probably afraid of the same thing as Mark, so he barely moves his left hand. "I think we should go somewhere and have breakfast."

"Uh?" Mark, who had his eyes closed and was actually enjoying the soft music Jeno was playing, looks at him a little stunned. "Breakfast?"

"Yes, aren't you hungry?" Jeno asks and bursts out laughing when he hears Mark's stomach grumbling. "See?" he carefully puts the guitar down on Mark's bed and gets up. "I think we should brush our hair first," Mark hears more laughter the moment he reaches up to touch his hair and feels that it's a little messy, sticking to different directions. He tries to fix it himself, without a comb. "Can you do the same to mine?

Mark wonders how Jeno's able to act so natural doing that while Mark himself looks like a robot when he's standing and putting Jeno's hair back in place.

"I think it's alright," he says, retreating his hands back down and glancing over at Jeno's hair one last time for good measure. "I know a good place not too far from here where we can go grab something to eat."

"Please, do the honors then," says Jeno whilst pointing a hand to the door, Mark does just that and Jeno follows him closely until they exit the apartment. The light is almost blinding, Mark's eyes are quite sensitive to it and he prays he won't trip and fall down the stairs, bringing Jeno down with him. His mind is brought back to earth when he feels Jeno slipping his hand into his and he then remembers that they agreed on walking in public like that. "Shall we go?"

Mark nods on automatic and starts walking, slowly going downstairs and feeling the warmth of Jeno's hands against him, it's weird because he hasn't walked like this with anyone before - his mother obviously does not count - and he doesn't know how to act.

"You can hold my hand back, you know?" Jeno whispers to him and Mark feels heat rushing to his cheeks, he just then notices that he was so distracted that he kept his hand limp there instead of reciprocating the action, he squeezes Jeno's hand and feels him laughing by his side. "Where are we going?"

"We're getting the off-campus way so we don't bump on anyone who can judge us or something," Mark explains and Jeno nods in understanding, it takes them no more than five minutes walking until they see familiar faces though.

"Why do we have to go out to walk your dog on a Saturday morning?" it's Dongyoung and Donghyuck. Dongyoung looks completely displeased at the situation. Donghyuck's smiling at him, they're both holding the leash with the handcuffed hands and it's probably the funniest thing they'll be seeing today. "We could be sleeping! We could be in peace!"

"Look, I always walk Alice early on Saturdays, she likes when the streets are empty," Donghyuck explains - " _to hell with what she likes!_ " - and sees Mark walking their opposite direction, he waves with the free hand and Dongyoung somehow sighs in relief at the sight of two other people suffering the same fate as him.

"G'morning," Jeno greets both and Donghyuck beams at him, Mark just nods in acknowledgement and looks down at the little dog jumping up and down at Dongyoung's feet. "How are you?"

"Great!

"Awful! This dog hates me," Dongyoung complains and Mark can't see what he is stating, Alice is clearly very happy to be in his presence.

"What are you talking about?" Donghyuck slaps his partner's arm playfully and Dongyoung's way too grumpy to get in the mood or even retaliate by hitting him back. "Alice loves everyone."

He grunts and looks over at Jeno with underlying desperation, Jeno just shrugs because there's nothing he can do.

"We gotta go," Donghyuck says before he's running with Alice and, consequently, pulling Dongyoung along. Mark's confused at why Jeno's so amused by it.

"Dongyoung hyung is really unlucky, he told me that he definitely didn't want to be partnered up with that Donghyuck boy," Jeno says when he notices Mark's skeptical expression and urges him to keep walking. "Anyway, breakfast."

"Breakfast," Mark repeats in agreement, he's desperately hungry now and drags the smiley Jeno with him.

 

 

On the walk back, Jeno suggests that they buy some food at the nearest grocery store so they don't have to go out for lunch and dinner later on, eating while being handcuffed was deemed almost impossible, and they're both saying that by experience. The worst part of the whole situation was probably the fact that they managed to drop the pancakes on their laps a few times, it was Mark for the most part because he was using his non-dominant hand and it kept shaking and Jeno felt bad for him - although Mark was the reason he dropped the food on his lap once -, so they agreed on eating at home instead.

Which leads to the situation where they're going up the flights the stairs until they reach Mark's apartment with a bunch of bags in their possession, Mark's much less nervous than he seemed to be earlier but that doesn't prevent him from tripping on his own feet and almost falling down, lucky him that Jeno is still holding his hand. "Please be careful," he warns and Mark nods, clutching the bags tighter and licking his lips. "If you drop my yogurt, you're going to pay for it."

Mark snorts when Jeno says that, he pretends to trip again on purpose just to see his reaction but Mark ends up actually doing that and he falls forward, bringing poor Jeno with him.

"Tell me my food is intact," Jeno pleads and Mark rolls his eyes at him, checking the bags he has in hands and seeing that everything's the same.

"You care more about the food than if I am alright or not," he jokes and Jeno gets up, still holding the groceries and forcing Mark to stand up as well.

"Of course, I paid for it!" he exclaims and Mark laughs at the outraged face Jeno gives him, he resumes walking and pulls Jeno along by the wrist - mostly because of the handcuffs and because their hands are all occupied. "What do you want to have for lunch?"

"I think you could use your amazing ramyun cooking skills that you mentioned," Mark nudges Jeno with his elbow and puts the bags on the floor, looking for his keys in the pockets of his jeans. "Or we can order pizza, I don't know."

"We literally bought food, we ain't ordering pizza or any takeout," Jeno pushes the door open once Mark has unlocked it and sighs in relief when he puts the bag down on the kitchen floor. The door is already closed and, surprisingly, Jeno thinks that Mark's apartment feels oddly like home even though he's been there for less than a whole day - it actually hasn't even been half a day yet. "I'll make us some ramyun then," he concludes by himself and Mark is just glad he won't have to cook or Jaehyun wouldn't be happy to come back to the news that the whole apartment building was burned down. "I'll need you to lend me a hand."

"I have no choice," Mark laughs as he lets Jeno pull him into the kitchen, comfortably rummaging through the cupboard in search of a stewpan he can use to boil the water.

The task is deemed rather difficult after a few bumps and Mark stepping on Jeno's feet more than twice, no major accidents happen and both are soon sat down with two steaming bowls of kimchi flavored ramyun in front of themselves.

"What are we going to have for dinner though?" Mark asks halfway through his meal and Jeno spares him a glance, shrugging and resuming his eating, they stay in silence until they're finished. "Let me do the dishes at last," Mark says taking the bowl from Jeno's grasp and dragging him into the kitchen once again.

"That was easy," Jeno comments as he stares at the clean dishes drying on the sink, Mark looks proud, at least he didn't drop anything - different from when they were eating a few minutes ago where Mark managed to make his chopsticks fly. "What are we going to do now?"

"I have no clue, we could just rest, I'm kinda tired," Mark mumbles shyly, it's just past one and he's already like that. "We can do something else if you want to though."

Jeno remains silent for a few seconds but is soon smiling, he pulls Mark to the living room and sits down on the couch. "You're right, I am tired and I agree that we should rest."

The silence that follows is a little uncomfortable, Mark looks to his right and sees Jeno with his eyes closed, he considers starting a conversation but Jeno looks like he's already asleep. Mark looks away when Jeno opens his eyes abruptly and smirks at him.

"Is there something on my face?" he jokes and Mark feels his cheeks burning for being caught staring. "Am I that hands-"

"I was going to ask you something but I seriously thought you were sleeping so I didn't say anything," he blurts out and Jeno's cheeks are also colored in a light shade of red for assuming things like that and actually saying it out loud.

"What were you going to ask?" he says and stares up at the ceiling, avoiding Mark's gaze.

"I just wanted to know your opinion on this project, you know," Mark answers and sighs, he doesn't look at Jeno, opting to do the same and just looks up ahead, the back of his head resting on the couch. "Like, what is the purpose even?"

"I feel like Professor Kim just wants to piss us off," he says and Mark laughs softly by his side, Jeno feels Mark's shoulder shaking against his and ends up laughing as well. "I don't really know."

"Me neither," Mark adds truthfully and Jeno sighs loudly.

"Is there something in your mind right now?" Jeno inquiries and Mark hums, not sure if he should share whatever it is with him, they barely know each other after all. "Sorry, I know we're literally strangers, you don't have to say it."

"Nah, it's fine," Mark mutters, surprised that he thought the same thing as him, and Jeno tilts his head to the left, staring right into Mark's eyes - Mark was actually looking at the side of Jeno's face as they spoke. "How do you feel about the project?"

Jeno smiles, it even reaches his eyes and Mark inhales loudly, blushing all the way down to his neck when he hears the giggle that escapes Jeno's lips as he does that. "I like it, not in a _would totally do it again_ way but more in a _it could've been worse so I'm thankful that my partner is not an ass_ one, y'know?" Mark's response is a hum and a nod of his head, he seems pleased by Jeno's answer and manages to blush some more. "Did I embarrass you by saying that?"

"No," he squeaks and his voice cracks, Jeno burst out laughing and Mark tries to hide his face but he can only use one hand to do that, so it doesn't work as well as he wished it did.

"What about you? How do you feel about the project?" Jeno sounds curious and Mark peeks at him from between his fingers.

"I was really nervous at first but it's going better than I thought," he says truthfully and looks away when he notices that Jeno's looking at him with that same smile. Taeil's words come back to his thoughts and he lets out a shaky breath, maybe he was right - _you already have a crush on your partner_.

 

 

Mark groans and rubs his eyes with his left hand, he actually ended up falling asleep and is now suddenly aware of the weight on his right shoulder, he holds his breath when he takes a look at it, he already knows what - or rather who - it is but it still manages to make him nervous, actually, it gets worse when he sees Jeno's peaceful face so up-close, he can feel his steady breathing and see how long his eyelashes are.

He turns his head and stares at the ceiling and, just then, notices that it's starting to get dark outside, the lights in the living room are turned off and the curtain at the window is preventing the light from entering the apartment properly, different from earlier. He doesn't know how much time he spends doing just that, probably an hour or more than that.

The moment Jeno stirs awake, the sky is already dark and Mark hears him groaning from his side, nuzzling his neck without noticing and Mark freezes, inhaling sharply and startling Jeno who he realizes what he's doing and sits straight up.

"We surely slept a lot, didn't we?" he says in a lighthearted tone and Mark tries to let out some amused sound that ends up sounding like a vinyl being scratched by someone's long nails but Jeno seems to accept it. "What time do you think it is?"

Mark lifts his left wrist and takes a glance at his watch, he widens his eyes and sighs loudly. "Almost six," he finally announces and Jeno raises his right arm, stretching it and letting out a long yawn. "We slept through the majority of the day," he states and Jeno nods, Mark doesn't see anything but feels the movement by his side instead.

"It's alright, we kind of missed the day but we still have tomorrow," Jeno sighs and leans against the couch, his shoulder brushing Mark's. "Do you want to turn the lights on and eat something?"

"I don't know what we could make though," Mark mumbles shyly and is already picturing the kitchen on fire. "I don't think it is a good idea."

Jeno huffs and stands up, forcing Mark to do the same thing so he doesn't hurt himself. "We can look through the fridge and search something on the internet, it can't be that hard, right?"

And it's with that thought that Jeno pulls Mark into the kitchen, they somehow manage to make something edible with the fresh vegetables Jaehyun had bought the previous day and some of the things they purchased earlier. For the two individuals who rarely touch the stove, it looks like a banquet.

"The rice is overcooked," Jeno comments but still holds a smile on his lips, Mark looks down at his plate and pokes a broccoli before eating it. "I can't believe we cooked this."

Mark is utterly amused at how happy Jeno is over a few boiled and stir fried vegetables with rice, it's adorable and he holds himself back from letting out any kind of weird sound to prevent himself from going through some type of embarrassment - and believe it or not, Mark is very prone to it.

"How long did we take to make this?" Jeno asks with his mouth full with rice despite complaining a little about it. Mark glances over at the clock and does the math.

"Like, an hour?" he tilts his head, not sounding too sure but there isn't much that can be demanded from him regarding the maths since Mark's never been that good at it since he was little. "You're right, it does taste good," he says after a few more bites of their meal, Jeno hums instead of speaking with his mouth full and Mark follows his actions, empting his plate rather fast.

If Mark had deemed cooking and doing the dishes difficult while being stuck with Jeno, nothing prepared him to what was about to come.

After a less complicated situation where both brushed their teeth and attempted to relieve themselves - which was, by far, the most awkward situation they've gone through -, Mark and Jeno agreed that they should definitely call it a day and go to sleep.

Everything was going fine until Jeno stood in the middle of the room, looking at Mark's bed.

"I think we could just share it instead of having you sleep on the floor," he says and Mark widens his eyes so hard that it looks like they're about to jump out of the sockets, he coughs and Jeno turns to look at him in concern. "It was alright but slightly uncomfortable, my back is still hurting a little. Plus, I almost broke your arm this morning."

"I don't think it's a good idea," Mark says slowly and Jeno tilts his head, waiting for further explanation. "I move too much during my sleep."

"But you didn't move an inch last night," Jeno comments and Mark curses mentally - _damn, observant people_. "It won't be a problem, it's more comfortable that you'll sleep better, I can see those soft dark circles around your eyes."

Mark reaches out to pad just under his eyes and sighs, he always ends up looking like this if he sleeps less than seven hours or if he wakes up too often in the middle of the night - which happened a lot because every time he tried turning his body, something held him back (and that something was clearly one Lee Jeno).

"I real-"

"Just accept the truth that sleeping on the floor sucks," Jeno cuts him off and Mark presses his lips tight, nervously scratching the side of his leg to distract himself. "I'm tired, can we just sleep?"

Mark would have complained about how demanding Jeno is being right now, but he's way too nervous at the thought of actually sharing the bed with him that he remains silent. All he does is let Jeno guide him to his own bed and wait till he decides to sit down on the mattress.

"I won't kick you, I promise," Jeno says as though this is what's worrying Mark. "Now, lie down and sleep."

Jeno makes himself at home on Mark's bed and even turns the light off on the light switch right next to him, Mark sighs deeply and stares at his lap while in the dark, the moonlight peeks through the still half opened curtain but it doesn't make him less nervous.

It takes more than just a few minutes until Mark calls defeat and slowly slides under the covers, his breathing shaky and his hands sweaty, he really can't work well under this kind of pressure - even if he's not exactly being pressured at all. The moment his shoulder touches Jeno's, he freezes because Jeno stirs in his sleep and seemingly turns his body to face him.

He lets out a strangled squeak when he feels Jeno's arms snaking around him and bringing his body closer, Jeno himself doesn't seem to hear the weird noise he makes and he doesn't dare moving, it doesn't feel uncomfortable but Jeno _is_ trespassing his personal space and Mark feels himself growing more and more aware of the low key attraction he's feeling for him.

He mumbles something that Mark doesn't catch but it doesn't make much of a difference because Jeno pulls him closer and nuzzles his neck as though he's a giant teddy bear.

Mark, sadly but expected, does not get a single wink of sleep.

 

 

Although he's feeling drained and really tired, Mark does not manage to fall asleep _at all_ , Jeno is still glued to him, breathing softly on his neck and Mark would honestly have cried if it all didn't feel so warm and comfortable despite the detail that he's starting to nurture a headache due to the lack of sleep.

There's movement and Jeno finally letting go of him, he mumbles something as he flutters his eyes and almost falls down the bed when he makes eye contact with Mark.

"Oh my God," he whispers and turns red, Mark automatically blushes as well when he sees the color on Jeno's cheeks. "I'm sorry, did I do anything to you while we were sleeping?"

 _You'd've had if I had actually slept_ he thinks but denies it with a single shaking of his head, Jeno sighs in relief and fixes his position on the bed.

"It's been quite some time since I slept so well," he breathes out and Mark coughs, forcing Jeno to turn his head to the side and stare at him. "Did you sleep well?"

Mark takes a deep breath and nods, not making eye contact with him since he assumes that Jeno will point out the darker circles under his eyes and he can't even try to hide it because sooner or later he _will_ see it.

"I've had better nights," Mark answers truthfully and Jeno hums, the silence gives away that he feels guilty for his situation and sits up, startling Mark. "What are you doing?"

"I feel at fault for you not getting proper sleep," he starts and Mark's about to question _how_ he knows that he's tired but he then remembers that he probably looks like a total wreck and just lets it slip. "So I'll make you some breakfast."

He remains immobile, wondering if he should ask Jeno to let him sleep some more or not. Mark's so distracted that he lets Jeno pull him by the hand and drag his ass all the way to the kitchen while he's barely managing to keep himself up.

"You're really tired," Jeno points out and cracks a few eggs in a bowl, beating them and throwing the mixture on a frying pan, Mark watches as he makes a simple omelette but, when they're in the living room, Jeno watching him eat what he's made, Mark feels all warm and fuzzy on the inside and he blames it all on the drowsiness wrapped around himself because there's no way he's feeling this on his own free will.

"This feels oddly domestic," Jeno comments with a bright smile adorning his lips and Mark chokes, having Jeno pat his back and offer to go get him some water, totally forgetting that they're stuck to each other. Mark refuses the offer of a drink and leans against the couch resting his head on the seat and having Jeno observe him carefully.

"Let's do something else," Mark says suddenly and he gets up, leaving the used plate there and praying that Jaehyun will not get home too early or he'll be nagged about keeping their house clean. "Better yet, let's go out and do something else so we have what to write on our reports."

 _It does sound like a good idea_ Mark thinks suggesting it and slowly walks up to the door, in case Jeno decides to protest so he doesn't get hurt.

"Where to?" Jeno says excited and dashes towards the door, totally dismissing if Mark is paying attention or not - thankfully Mark was - and they leave the apartment together, Jeno holding his hand on auto-pilot already and Mark sweating when he feels him doing so, even though he knew that part. "We could ride a bike at the park?"

"Like this?" Mark raises their linked hands and Jeno's expression falls, reality reminding him that if they do that, they will not leave the park unscattered. "If you really want to do it, you could ride a bike and I'll walk by your side. It can't be too hard."

Jeno seems tempted by the offer and quickly accepts it, Mark worriedly pats his pockets and sighs in relief when he feels his wallet there, renting a bike without money to pay for it doesn't sound too appealing.

The actual moment where Jeno is up on the bike and Mark's still holding his hand is, at first, a disaster. Jeno doesn't seem to manage keeping his balance all too well, be it because he is nervous or anything else, Mark's worried that they might fall and get hurt, so he tries his best to help Jeno out, softly pushing him to the right when he notices that he's falling more to his side.

They take half a turn around the park before Jeno decides that it had not been his best idea and he's had enough.

"Do you want to try?" he says as he gets down from the bike and Mark widens his eyes. "Oh, I _see_ ," he teases and Mark gives him a confused look. "You don't know how to do it, it's alright, I know a lot of people who can't ride bikes."

First things first, Mark is not someone who easily decides to prove himself right and act on instinct to show that the other party might be wrong - and they are, definitely -, that's why he concludes that he has lost his own mind when he yanks the bike from Jeno's grip and hops on it - maybe it's the lack of sleep -, pedaling and forcing Jeno to run with him or he'll lose his arm.

"Yah yah yah!" he shouts and Mark only stops pedaling when they're in front of the place they rented the vehicle, both panting and Jeno looking at him sternly. "I asked you to _stop_."

"Sorry," Mark says but it's already too late to apologize, he looks down at their wrists and sees that his own is red due to his reckless action. "I didn't mean to hurt you or anything."

"It's fine," Jeno huffs, it does not look like things are fine, at all. The smile is gone and Mark avoids making eye contact with him by handing the bike back and paying the person behind the cash register, Jeno follows him without saying a word and when they start walking out of the park, he still doesn't open his mouth to speak.

"Do you want to get something to eat?" Mark suggests shyly and Jeno just nods, not saying anything. "I know a nice place just two blocks from here."

Jeno does not move and Mark has to start walking, he's glad enough that he is just following him. The front of the shop is very familiar to Mark and he sighs, just then noticing that despite letting go of his hand when he was on the bike, Jeno is holding it again and he doesn't remember it happening.

"They have nice tonkatsu here," Mark comments and Jeno is still quiet, it's unfitting seeing that Mark was already used to him talking most of the time. "I forgot to ask if you like it."

"I do," he finally says and sits down next to him on a table at the end of the small restaurant, Mark distracts himself with the menu and Jeno does the same.

"May I take your order?"

"I want the traditional," Mark smiles and turns to look over at Jeno, who's curiously looking through the menu still.

"Uh, the same as him," he says after a while and the waiter leaves, Jeno then raises his head and stares into Mark's eyes. Mark gulps but does not look away.

"I'm sorry again, I really didn't mean to do that," he apologizes and is surprised that Jeno starts laughing, that beautiful smile of his gracing those thin soft looking lips and Mark even gets his cheeks tinted red at how unexpected it is.

"It's fine, like I said. I was mad but it's alright now," Mark sighs in relief and Jeno raises an eyebrow. "Alright if you pay for my meal," Mark frowns and stares at him with a face that says _are you serious?_ "I'm just asking that because I did not bring my own wallet so I've got zero money with me."

"Excuses," Mark jokes and the atmosphere is suddenly a lot more comfortable and they manage to talk freely while having lunch.

 

 

The moment they step foot back in the apartment, Mark is yawning and leaning against Jeno without noticing.

"You should sleep," Jeno says and Mark jumps in surprise when he notices what he's doing, he turns red in embarrassment but agrees with what Jeno said. "You look like you'll just drop anywhere without notice."

Mark laughs weakly and lets go of Jeno's hand that was pulling him all the way from the restaurant.

"You're right, I'm dying," Mark mumbles and keeps walking wherever Jeno is taking him, it obviously ends up being his bedroom. "I think we should do something else though? Today is the last day of this experiment thing and I don't know if we did much that can be put in our reports."

"Man, I don't think we would be able to do anything with you like this," Jeno points out and sits down on the edge of the bed, observing as Mark just throws his body down on the mattress and closes his eyes. "Just sleep and I'll wake you up when it's almost time to go."

"Won't you get bored though?" Mark yawns and falls asleep instantly, not hearing anything that Jeno says as a reply.

Mark stirs awake after what feels like a really long time, he blinks his eyes slowly and sits up in surprise when he notices he has his arms around Jeno's torso.

"Oh, you're up earlier than I thought," Jeno says and looks at Mark, putting his phone back on his pocket. "It's almost seven, I think we should eat something," Jeno messes his hair up and Mark tilts his head.

"You stayed up for over five hours without doing anything?" Mark asks in confusion when he sees the time and Jeno laughs at him, shaking his head.

"I played Candy Crush and went up to level three hundred, I think I did a lot while you rested," he smiles widely and Mark looks away, feeling the blush spreading all over his face when he sees the expression of pure glee in Jeno's face. Mark takes the initiative and gets up, dragging Jeno to the kitchen with him. "Are you going to cook?"

"I don't know," Mark scratches his head and looks at the multiple delivery menus he keeps by the microwave oven, he picks it up and waves them in front of Jeno's face. "What do you think?"

"Jjajangmyeon?" Jeno replies with a grin and Mark snorts, taking his phone out and ordering.

The delivery man looks at them weirdly when he notices the handcuffs but Jeno ignores it, just pays him and closes the door with a _thank you_.

"Let's eat and leave," Mark says and struggles to use the chopsticks, although not caring much about it since he's super hungry. He does watch Jeno eating quietly though, wondering what's going in his mind as he eats his food.

"Thanks for the meal," Jeno says and places his chopsticks on the bowl, looking over at Mark and the mess he's making. "Here's a napkin," he offers and laughs when Mark turns red before taking it. "Oh, it's already half past eight."

"Oh shit," Mark gulps down the rest and uses the napkin to clean the mess on his lips, getting up and cleaning the table as well. "The weekend passed by quickly, don't you think?" Mark comments and wonders if it feels like this just for him because he slept a lot during the afternoon but Jeno agrees with a nod and a smile and he believes it.

"I just have to grab my stuff," Jeno comments and tugs at Mark's hand pulling him to his own bedroom and getting the backpack that's on top of a chair. "Let's go now."

Mark locks the apartment before they're already hand in hand and going down the stairs.

It's weird to think about it, but Mark was starting to grow accustomed to having Jeno around. Weird because he's met Jeno less than a week ago and he's not really wanting this experiment to end - but he does want the cuffs to just disappear - because after it, he won't have any reason to be in contact with Jeno. In amidst his thoughts, Mark doesn't notice that they've reached their destination until Jeno stops walking and he ceases his as well.

Professor Kim can be seem from where they are, calling one pair at a time and freeing them - he sees the majority of the students dancing in happiness as they run out of the scene.

"How was the weekend boys?" he asks Jeno and Mark when he unlocks the handcuffs.

"Alright, I guess," Mark mumbles and rubs his wrist, feeling light and free, then turning to Jeno and seeing a smile on his lips as he chats with the professor. "I guess I'll go home," he tells Jeno and turns to leave but Jeno holds him by the arm.

"Let me accompany you," he offers and Mark doesn't get the chance to say anything in response before Jeno's slipping his hand on his - Mark holds the urge to ask him why he's doing that now that the handcuffs aren't there anymore but he holds it back. "I can't believe it's over. Wow."

"I know right," Mark laughs weakly and kicks a few pebbles that are on the way, they walk in silence until he's standing in front of his apartment's door. "You could've left your backpack here, you know," Mark comments to break the silence and Jeno stifles a laugh.

"I didn't really plan on coming with you," Jeno answers and rubs circles at the back of Mark's hand, Mark gets extremely distracted because of it, fixing his attention on the action that he barely has time to register anything when he lifts his head and sees Jeno's face so close to his, so close that he can tell they're a breath away from each other. "I realized I wouldn't have a chance of doing this if I didn't come with you and that I'd definitely regret it," he says before pressing his lips to Mark's and closing his eyes while Mark keeps his wide open and his legs almost give in at the warmth of Jeno's soft lips against his.

But the kiss doesn't last long, Jeno's soon pulling away, his smile brighter than the usual and Mark brings his fingers to his lips absentmindedly, touching them and feeling his cheeks burn.

"I'm sorry, I should've asked if you would let me kiss you or not," Jeno says sheepishly as he rubs the back of his neck and stares down at the floor. Much to his surprise, Mark places a hand on his shoulder and licks his lips, looking as though he wants to say something.

"Do you want to go out with me when you have time?" he says in one go, stuttering a little - and missing the muttered _cute_ coming from Jeno - and Jeno, who was already smiling brightly, looks even happier than before, nodding his head fervently and attacking Mark with a hug.

"I have classes until four on Tuesdays," Jeno says and lets go of him, he kisses him once again for good measure and plays with the strap of his backpack. "I need to go now and check if Renjun didn't destroy our apartment while I was away."

Mark feels sad when he sees Jeno turning his back at him and running down the stairs, disappearing in the distance. He sighs a few times before unlocking the door and entering the apartment, Mark notices that the lights are on and widens his eyes when he sees Jaehyun sat down on the couch with his arms crossed, he does not look too happy.

"Mark Lee," he says and Mark takes a step back. "You left dirty dishes on the sink."

"Sorry hyung, I'll go wash them right now," Mark flees to the kitchen and starts working on it but his mind is somewhere else.

Mark closes the tap once he's done and realization suddenly hits him, he fishes for his phone on his pocket and groans once he checks his contacts list. "For the love of God, Mark Lee. How can you be so stupid?" he groans and already thinks that he will have to look for Jeno tomorrow and ask him for his number.

After feeling satisfied with his own plan - which is not an actual plan -, Mark rushes to the bathroom in order to shower which is basically the thing he wanted to do the most ever since he came back into the apartment. A dumb smile easily finds its way to Mark's lips as he thinks back about Jeno and how he might've hit jackpot with this godforsaken project because Jeno's a sweetheart and he's very _very_ whipped already.

**Author's Note:**

> Congratulations if you've made it this far and thank you for reading!!!


End file.
